The Code of Pirates


The punishments aboard these ships could vary from ship to ship, or Capitan to Capitan. Bartholomew's crew tended towards either marooning the crewmember or having the accused pay a fine in money or jewels. In the occasion of an inter-party thief, being left to die some harsh or even death itself. 

While many people believe that pirates were completely lawless individuals who ruled the seas of the Caribbean and beyond doing anything that they please by any means necessary, however, that isn't entirely true. 

Many pirates lived by the same code of conduct. These codes of conduct were followed by the pirates and acted as their laws. These rules were met with strict punishments if the rules were broken. These punishments could include anything from flogging to death. Sadly, while you might be thinking about Captians forcing a pirate to walk the plank, but unfortunately, that is not an actual form of punishment widely used by pirates during these times. 

One fantastic thing about pirates of this period is that different groups of pirates worked under a democracy, which went against many of the governments of this time. Many of whom were still under the rule of a monarchy. 

For example, the pirate code of Bartholomew Roberts' number one rule was that every man aboard the ship had a vote in every matter of importance, and every man had an equal share of the provisions.

Roberts' code also made sure to include that every man received an equal share of all the prizes that they gained from any of their activities. It was stating that "Every man shall be called fairly in turn by the list on board of prizes because over and above their proper share, they are allowed a shift of clothes." (Bartholomew's Code of Conduct)


A Marooned Pirate, by Howard Pyle.
Many times, Pirates also gave rewards towards losing a limb in combat. Captain John Phillips would payout 400 pieces of Eight (a Spanish dollar) for the loss of a joint and 800 for the loss of a limb. Exquemelin wrote about Captian Morgan's code of conduct in his book with similar measures of the loss of limbs. 

While in today's standards, these punishments are harsh, and breaking them could lead to your death. With how most ships were a democracy, it means that all of the crew knew these rules going in the journey at sea. It also means that these pirates all came together, for the most part, to agree on these rules. 

Most of the Pirates Codes include a section in how the crew has to take an oath agreeing to follow the code. 

Personally, I do not think that the punishments of the pirates were too severe by the standards of the time. They knew what they were risking when they joined the ship's crew, and the codes clearly defined the punishments of the crime. 

Sources:
Pirate Code of Conduct, www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/pirate-code-conduct.htm.
“Articles of Henry Morgan - Pirate Articles Aka Pirate Codes.” Google Sites, sites.google.com/a/uconn.edu/pirate-articles-aka-pirate-codes/surviving-pirate-articles/articles-of-henry-morgan.
Maroon Pyrate, https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fcommons.wikimedia.org%2Fwiki%2FFile%3APyle_pirate_marooned.jpg&psig=AOvVaw0HCx4XreXngc_-98sSwufL&ust=1586109287546000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CA0QjhxqFwoTCPCG8terz-gCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD

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